LIMITING GOD

READ: LUKE 5:1-11

God can decide to single you out for a miracle. The day your miracle locates you, your life will become a wonder to friends and foes. In Luke 4:25-26, Jesus said there were many widows in the time of Elijah but he was sent to only the widow of Zarephath. She had a breakthrough and was singled out for prosperity. Naaman also had a breakthrough. Luke 4:27 tells us that there were many lepers in Israel at the time of Elisha but none f them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian. God singled him out for a breakthrough. He was not just healed of leprosy but his skin became like that of small baby. Moses had his own breakthrough too. He was forgotten for 40 years. God came to him and told him to go to Egypt and bring His people out. Peter also had a breakthrough. In Luke 5, the Lord chose Peter’s boat out of the many boats ashore and, from that day onwards, it was breakthrough after breakthrough for him. On that day he caught so many fishes that his boa began to sink. He soon became a fisher of men (Acts 2:38-41), as prophesied by Jesus Christ. He became a successful minister of God. The man who digs a well and comes across water had had a breakthrough. However, a man who digs a well and comes across crude oil has had a greater breakthrough. The man who struck oil would have enough money to buy all the water he needs. Some people limit themselves to ordinary breakthroughs. The Bible says if we are obedient and willing, we will eat the good of the land (Isaiah 1:19). Many of us are obedient but we are not willing to prosper. Do not limit yourself. Survey the greatest heights ahead of you and believe God for the impossible. The sky is not your limit. You can soar, like an eagle beyond the sky. Don’t limit God.

MEMORIZE: 1 CORINTHIANS 2:10 –But God has revealed them to us through His spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.

DIVINE APPOINTMENT

READ: JOHN 9:1-7

Our text reveals something deep and refreshing. The importance of today’s lesson is this: God brings out His best when men think they have done their worst against you. The devil thought that he had sealed the fate of man who was born blind. He must have concluded that congenial blindness was an impossibility. God proved him wrong. Here is a dramatic but a miraculous story: Jesus Christ and His disciples saw this man who was born blind and the disciples asked whether it was the man that sinned or his ^parents. Jesus Christ said that neither the man nor his parents sinned but his blindness was for the works of God to be glorified in him. There is another example in John 5:1-9. There was this man by the pool of Bethesda who could not enter the water to be healed. He had been trying to jump into the pool without any success because there was no one to help him. One day, Jesus came by and went straight to this man and asked whether he wanted to be made whole. The man thought that the best that Jesus could do was to throw him into the pool. Jesus Christ told him to rise, take his bed and go home. There is also the story of Daniel in Daniel 6. The enemy focussed on him and wanted to get rid of him. They took him and threw him into the lions’ den, thinking they had got rid of him. The following morning, the one who was supposedly singled out for destruction was brought alive. All those ho plotted against him and their families became food for the lions. When the enemy thinks that you are singled out for a problem, the Almighty God will hold you singled out for a miracle. Never mind what the devil s doing. God is on the throne. He will perform such outstanding miracle that would be to the eternal shame of the devil. I pray that God will give you a divine appointment today.

MEMORIZE: ISAIAH 43:7 –Everyone who is called by my name, whom I have created for My glory; I have formed him, yes, I have made him.

IRREVERSIBLE BLESSINGS

READ: NUMBERS 23:19-24

Blessings are irreversible in nature. However, God may be forced to cancel or reverse your blessings if you fall below expectations and fail to make amends. This should not be taken as a sweeping statement. Let me clear this point. No man can reverse the blessing that God has given you. This is clearly stated in our text: “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that he should repent. Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? Behold, I have received a command to bless; He has blessed, and I cannot reverse it.” Even the man who places a blessing on you cannot reverse it. When Jacob stole the blessing of Esau, Isaac could not reverse it. “Then Isaac answered and said to Esau, Indeed I have made him your master, and all his brethren I have given to him as servants; with grain and wine I have sustained him. What shall I do now for you, my son?” Jacob’s blessings were irreversible. When God has blessed you, no man can reverse it, except you. You can tell God that you do not need His blessings. Even then, you have to force Him to remove it. In 1Samuel 2:30, God sent a message to Eli: “Therefore the LORD God of Israel says: I said indeed that your house and the house of your father would walk before Me forever; but now the LORD says: Far be it from Me; for those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me shall be lightly esteemed.” We often force God to reverse His blessings by failing to keep our own side of bargain. Another example is that of Ephraim. After God had blessed him, he forgot God. God pleaded with him to retrace his steps but he cared less. Ephraim preferred to serve Baal. To end it all, in Hosea 4:17, God aid: “Ephraim is joined to idols, let him alone.” I pray that you will never get to that stage where God will decide you be left alone. In Hosea 5:9, God continued His rebuke of Ephraim: “Ephraim shall be desolate in the day of rebuke; among the tribes of Israel I make known what is sure.” May you never be desolate, in Jesus’ name. However, the ball is in your court. If you refuse to make amends quickly, God will have no option than to reverse the blessings. May the Lord help you! Amen.

MEMORIZE: PROVERBS 23:20 –Do not mix with winebibber, or with gluttonous eaters of meat.

NO WAY

READ: PROVERBS 1:22-33

No matter how powerful the devil is, there are certain things he cannot do without your co-operation. Satan must find an ally in you before he can harm, or lead you into sin. The only group of people who cannot be captured by the enemy are those who have made up their minds to close all doors against the devil. If you are holy and obedient you can relax because you are secure forever. Nobody will harm you if you do not leave a loophole in your life. If there s no crack in your armour, there will be no way for the devil to penetrate. In 1 Peter 3:13, the Bible says, “And who is he who will harm you if you become followers of what is good?” Who will harm you, if you are living holy? Proverbs 1:32-33 says, “For the turning away of the simple will slay them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them; but whoever listens to me will dwell safely, and will be secure, without fear of evil.” Do you wish to dwell safely? Abide in Christ. Proverbs 12:21 says, “No grave trouble will overtake the righteous, but the wicked shall be filled with evil.” If you pretend to be holy while you are not, you will destroy yourself. But the truth is that no evil shall happen to the just. Psalm 53:4-5 says: “Have the workers of iniquity no knowledge, who eat up my people as they eat bread, and do not call upon God? There they are in great fear where no fear was, for God has scattered the bones of him who encamps against you; you have put them to shame because God has despised them.” Those who live in sin are always afraid even when there is nothing to fear. Truly, they have reasons to be afraid. Anybody fighting the devil and casting out demons will have his name on the list of the enemy. However, the enemies know that as long as you live holy, they cannot touch you. However, as soon as you slip and fall, and your armour cracks, the demons will move in to torment you. Satan cannot gain entry into your life except you grant him access. The door you open to the devil is the only entry point he has into your life. Unfortunately, many have thrown wide open all the doors of their lives thereby constructing an expressway for the devil to zoom into their lives. Watch how you open your doors – it might be your undoing.

MEMORIZE: 1 PETER 3:13 –And who is he who will harm you if you become followers of what is good?

CURSED BLESSING

READ: GENESIS 12:1-4

Of all problems in the world, the issue of cursed blessings is the worst. When joy turns to sorrow, sweetness becomes sour and good turns to evil, men become perplexed and confused. Do you know that one’s blessing can be cursed? That is what we shall examine today. We all know that the sun is blessing. When the sun is shining, there are light and warmth. Scientists tell us that if there is no sun there will be no growth in vegetation. The moon is also a very good blessing. Those of us who live in cities may not appreciate this fact but those who live in villages where there is no electricity regard the moon as their own divine source of light. When the sun suddenly begins to smite by day and destroy the skin, then that which is supposed to be a blessing has become a curse. This will happen during the tribulation days. And this is why we have to be out of this world when Jesus comes for His own because those who are left behind will suffer and there will be nowhere to hide. When God created the sun and the moon, He saw that it was good job done. They are supposed to be blessings. However, when we go through the scriptures, we will see those who have been blessed and how their blessings became curses and we will see in some cases what they did to revert the curses to blessings. There is an instructive story concerning Abraham in Genesis 12:1-4 where God told Abraham that He would bless him mightily so much that he would be a blessing to the whole world, provided he did three things: get out of his country, his family and his father’s house, to a land that He would show him. Abraham got out of his country and his father’s house but he did not get out of his family because he took Lot with him. Because his obedience was incomplete, he met trouble waiting for him when he arrived where God promised to have blessing waiting for him (Genesis 12:10-16). There was famine in the land, caused by Abraham’s disobedience. His blessings became a curse, which extended to other people. Are you living under a curse when you are supposed to be blessed? Has your blessing turned to a curse? Examine yourself, discover the reasons and make amends.

MEMORIZE: 2 CORINTHIANS 10:6 –And being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled.

THE PERIL OF COMPROMISE

READ: GENESIS 19:30-36

The devil is a smart player. He has a joker which he uses with anyone. He often bids his time until he finds a suitable opportunity. Today’s devotional study is a sort of case study on a major Bible character: Lot. Let us first take a look at the joker card Satan used on Lot. Lot had two major faults. One was covetousness and the other was the love of wine. When Abraham told Lot to take a portion of land, instead of waiting for Abraham to take his own first, Lot chose first, and the best part of the land for that matter. This is in Genesis 13:8-11. When Lot got to Sodom, he joined the council of the city. Genesis 19:1 tells us: “Now the two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them, and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground.” That was how he became a councillor. He also became more prosperous. When he was told that danger was coming upon the city, he did not wish to leave. Look at Genesis 19:15-16: “When the morning dawned, the angels urged Lot to hurry, saying, Arise, take your wife and your two daughters who are here, lest you be consumed in the punishment of the city. And while he lingered, the men took hold of his hand, his wife’s hand, and the hands of his two daughters, the LORD being merciful to him, and they brought him out and set him outside the city.” Lot lingered and did not want to leave the city. The angels had to force him out of the city. Satan must have been laughing when this was happening, as he was yet to use his joker card. Satan, at last, got Lot. Satan will always try to use your weakness or addiction to trap you. More than anything else, you need to set a watch over your life. Satan will always hide his joker, hoping to use it during your moment of carelessness. You may appear to be strong today but watch it, the devil is on the prowl. Don’t let him catch you unawares.

MEMORIZE: LUKE 17:32 –Remember Lot’s wife.

THE POWER OF HOLINESS

READ: DANIEL 6:20-22

God has deposited an awesome power in holiness or purity. This power protects, promotes, blesses and uplifts. The moment you become holy, God transfers the power of holiness into your innermost being. This power of holiness will then enable you to overcome the prince of this world. Who is the prince of this world? Satan, of course; when Jesus said He had nothing in Him, He meant that when Satan came to Him and examined Him, the devil found nothing satanic- nothing sinful or evil in Him. Therefore, he had no grounds on which to either accuse Him or to condemn Him. Satan had no claim on our Lord. Let me ask you: Does Satan have any clam on you? If we wish to overcome the enemy, as Jesus did, we must be as pure as Jesus was. Daniel is a good example of a man of holiness, purity and perfection. His enemies could find nothing in him. However, in spite of his obvious innocence, his opponents set a trap for him. There seemed to be no way of escape. Falsely accused, Daniel was thrown into the den of lions. He spent the whole night there among the wild beats, but they did not harm him. The next morning when the king came to check on Daniel, he cried out to him: “Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the lions?” (Daniel 6:20). And Daniel answered: “O king live forever! My God sent His angel and shut the lions’ mouths, so that they have not hurt me, because I was found innocent before Him; and also, O king, I have done no wrong before you. ” (Daniel 6:21-22). Daniel was spared because he had done nothing against either God or the king. When the lions came to devour Daniel, they moved away from him because he was surrounded and protected by a circle of pure light, which emanated from his very being. This is exactly what will happen to you when the devil comes to attack you. If they find no fault in you, they will not be able to do you any harm because your purity and holiness will be your protection. Are you holy within and without?

MEMORIZE: 1 PETER 1:16 –Because it is written, Be holy, for I am holy.